How did one of the city’s signature projects — a 26-mile pedestrian and bicycle trail from Pineville to UNC Charlotte — end up more than $77 million short, with barely a third of the money needed to complete it?

That’s the question Charlotte City Council members are grappling with, after the surprise revelation Monday that there’s not nearly enough bond money available for the Cross Charlotte Trail. Now, the plan’s future is murky, with no clear source of funding to close the gap and no consensus on City Council about whether to proceed with a scaled-down version of the trail.

Council members this week said they were “stunned,” “outraged” and “embarrassed.”